PETITION SEEKS TO CHANGE FEDERAL WATER LAW Lake Texoma Association (LTA) has started a petition to amend existing and/or introduce new federal water law. The effort seeks to protect Oklahoma’s water resources by requiring that drought control and conservation be a facet of federal reservoir projects. Click here to learn more and sign the petition. SAVE […]
Haskell County teens lead a revolution – There’s a revolution in the wind, one that is shaping a better future for all Oklahomans. It’s a Revolution of Responsibility, and Haskell County teens Tyler Hudspeth and Tyler Satterfield are out in front, leading the way. Read More… Oklahoma Water Issues – October 2013
Note: This Journal Record story about OKC’s billion dollar run at Sardis Lake was published the same day these pictures of water pouring out of the gates of Overholser Dam were taken … OKC could spend $1 billion to get Sardis water by M. Scott Carter Published: August 9th, 2013 OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City […]
In the final battle of a protracted water dispute between Oklahoma and Texas, the United States Supreme Court ruled that Tarrant Regional Water District (TRWD), a Texas water entity, cannot cross into Oklahoma to take water. In the June 13 unanimous decision, which upholds the rulings of two lower federal courts, the Supreme Court held […]
David Ocamb, Director of the Oklahoma chapter of the Sierra Club, wrote an Op-Ed recently published in the Oklahoma Gazette. Read his message to Oklahomans here (link to Op-Ed included): The past two years have been amongst the hottest and driest in Oklahoma history. Not since the “Dirty 30’s” have we seen dust storms close […]
Getting Serious About a Texas-Size Drought by Kate Galbraith, The Texas Tribune April 8, 2013 Something odd happened here last week. It rained. But the relief, an answer to desperate prayers, is likely to be short-lived. The drought that has gripped much of Texas since the fall of 2010 shows few signs of abating soon. […]
Oklahomans for Responsible Water Policy has filed a brief in the United States Supreme Court in one of the most significant water cases in the state’s history. The amicus curiae brief, called a “friend of the court” brief, was filed by the citizens group in the case of Tarrant Regional Water District against individual members of […]
OKLAHOMA CITY- In the midst of a historic drought, a House Committee overturned the will of the people yesterday after passing HB 1562 through committee. Authored by Rep. Paul Wesselhoft, R-Moore, HB 1562 strips language from the Water for 2060 Act, which was signed into law just a year ago and recommends water usage levels […]
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States Supreme Court announced Friday that it would hear appeals in the lawsuit from the Tarrant Regional Water District against the Oklahoma Water Resources Board. In a one-sentence brief, the court said, simply, that a writ of certiorari had been granted in the case, Tarrant Regional Water District versus Herrman. […]
The U.S. Department of Justice recommended last week that the U.S. Supreme Court should review Tarrant Regional Water District’s lawsuit against the Oklahoma Water Resources Board, but also consider the water rights of the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations. In a legal opinion filed with the court on Nov. 30, the U.S. Solicitor General Donald Verrilli […]
The latest issue of our print publication, Oklahoma Water Issues, is now available. It focuses on protecting water in the basin of origin. It is ORWP’s position that basin of origin protection must be put into Oklahoma law. Interbasin transfers are all too often the first considered solution to water shortages, whether those shortages are perceived or […]
By State Representative Brian Renegar March 15, 2012 Water in southeastern Oklahoma, particularly in Sardis Lake, has ignited a firestorm of controversy which could impact the policies regarding our most precious natural resource for generations to come. The Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations filed a lawsuit in federal court to enjoin the Oklahoma Water Resources Board […]
Oklahomans for Responsible Water Policy today applauded a U.S. Department of Justice decision to remove a water rights lawsuit from the Oklahoma Supreme Court and place it in federal court. DOJ documents filed Mar. 12 state that the stream adjudication suit filed by the Oklahoma Water Resources Board last month should be handled on a […]
The Oklahoma Water Resources Board (OWRB) voted in December 2011 to authorize its attorneys to file a suit or suits to determine water rights in Southeastern and Southern Oklahoma. On Feb. 10, 2012, the OWRB filed a stream adjudication suit, naming almost 200 water permit holders as respondents in that suit. The number of respondents […]
Photos of Kiamichi River and Cucumber River…. 1 Kiamichi River – Pictures taken by John Redman –of wasted OK water heading to the gulf! 2 Kiamichi River 2 – Another Picture taken by John Redman –showing Oklahoman’s reported massive amounts of wasted OK water heading to the gulf! 3 Cucumber Creek, upper tributary of Mt. Fork as it crosses […]